


Day of Devotion - Two

by Sayl



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-16
Updated: 2018-02-16
Packaged: 2019-03-19 07:31:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13699818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sayl/pseuds/Sayl
Summary: Owain enlists his father's help to pick out a gift for his mother, only to find out that his father hasn't gotten her anything? The AUDACITY.





	Day of Devotion - Two

 

>      “This way, papa!” Owain demands, veering to the right. The sudden motion isn’t enough to drag Lon’qu anywhere, but he complies when he feels the strong tug on his hand. For a young child, he’s fairly strong. He guides his father into the next shop (the fifth, to be precise) and the crunching of snow beneath their boots is quickly replaced by the clunk of their shoes on wooden floors.

    Lon’qu allows the boy to guide him through the shop, Owain’s small hand wrapped around his fingers all the while. From what he can tell, this is some sort of shop for cookware. He isn’t sure what his son is looking for at this point, considering they’ve also been through a carpentry store, an armory and a glassblower’s shop. There didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for where they were going. Though, perhaps Lon’qu should have been the one offering guidance rather than leaving all the navigation decisions to a six-year-old.

    “Papa! You’re not helping!” Owain protests as they walk past a set of pans that the boy looks completely uninterested in. He tugs at his father’s hand again to make sure he grabs his attention.

    Lon’qu’s gaze moves down, eyebrows raised in slight surprise. Owain had asked him to take him shopping so that he could get his mother a holiday gift, but…As far as shopping went, the swordsman wasn’t exactly the most knowledgeable. _**“** What are you looking for  **?”**_  He asked, genuinely oblivious to what he’s supposed to do in this scenario.

    His son lets out a huff of air, his bottom lip jutting out in a pout. “I don’t know, Papa! Mama likes so many things…it’s hard to pick!”Owain glances at the pouch on his father’s belt. He pats at the leather, coins jingling against each other as he does. “How much do we got?”

    Lon’qu places his hand over the coinbag, partially obscuring it from view. _**“** Don’t worry about that  **,”**_ he advises. He’d spent his entire childhood knowing that money was what put food on the table and they never seemed to have enough of it. There would be plenty of time in the future for Owain to learn about finances…But not right now. _ **“** Just go with your instincts…I believe you’ll know when you’ve found something  **.”**_

    The logic makes perfect sense to the swordsman, but as far as Owain is concerned it’s the worst bit of advice he’s ever heard. He lets out a frustrated huff, grumbling something as he continues to search around with his father in tow.

    Finally, after another quarter of an hour, something catches the boy’s eye. He releases Lon’qu’s hand before breaking into a bouncing jog toward the back wall. The swordsman follows, flexing his fingers out to stretch the stiff muscles. As he reaches him, the child pulls a heap of fabric off a low shelf, the cloth tumbling out of its fold and unrolling to the ground. It’s an apron, white with a sun-yellow trim. There’s a pocket on the skirt with a yellow patch shaped like a duckling stitched onto it. Owain points at the applique, then looks up to his father with an excited grin. “Mama loves birds!”

    Lon’qu isn’t entirely sure if ducks count, but Lissa would love anything her son picked out for her (and she’d obtained a few stains on some of her dresses from her attempts at cooking anyway). A small smile eases onto the man’s face and he gives the boy a nod of approval, before motioning for him to bring it with him to the counter.

 

* * *

 

 

    After the purchase, their strides make way to the exit and back toward the direction of home. Owain babbles his excitement over the purchase, holding it tucked close under his arms as his other hand is glued to his father’s once again. They make it a minute or so out before the boy tugs at his fingers, looking up with an expectant smile.   
    “Papa! What did you get for mama?”

     Lon’qu blinks in response, pausing in his tracks. It wasn’t that he was against the idea of it…He’d given Lissa gifts before. But he generally did not do so for these sorts of…frivolous holidays. He had no qualms if he son wanted to participate, but he hadn’t been expecting to be roped into it. _**“**  Uhm  **….”**_

    The hesitation is enough of an answer. The boy’s eyes grow wide, jaw dropping as he stares at his father, incredulous. “You didn’t get mama a present!?” He’s absolutely flabbergasted…offended, even.

_“ I….did not .”_ He responds, hesitant to admit this to his own child who seems fairly appalled at the thought. 

    Owain isn’t having any of it. His brows knit together as he purses his lips, indignant as ever. “Papa! You have to! It’s Day of Devotion! Don’t you love mama?”   
    He blanches, face almost as pale as the snow at such accusations.  _ **“**  O-of course I do **,”**_  he says quickly, though the sentence trails of there. How is he supposed to explain his reasons for not participating in the traditions of a holiday centered around affections to his young son without coming off as some sort of monster?

    He’s not, it turns out. There’s a moment of stunned silence between the two, but in the end, its Lon’qu who loses this battle. He sighs, nodding his head in acknowledgment as he turns them around to head back toward the shops. His tone is soft, and admittedly awkward, as he isn’t generally one to lie.   
_**“**  I just…forgot to pick it up. Thank you for reminding me  **.”**_

 

* * *

 

 

    An hour or so later, they return, kicking the snow off their boots before stepping inside. Upon hearing the door shut, Lissa peeks out into the hall from the den. She’s wearing a smile, but there’s no ignoring the slight scrutiny in her eyes. “There you guys are! You were out a while.”   
Owain decides it’s better to show her why than to explain. He releases his father’s hand, giving the man a chance to shrug off his coat. The boy fumbles with the apron he’s been carrying to let it fall open and presents it to his mother. “Mama mama! I got you this!” he holds it up, though it’s almost as long as he is tall. 

    Her eyes light up in response, a dramatic gasp leaving her as she crouches down, sitting back on her heels. “Oh my! This is lovely, Owain! Did you pick this out for me?” He nods enthusiastically, lowering it down below his head again so he can see her. “Papa got you something too!” 

    Lissa blinks, certainly caught off guard by that bit of information. She turns to look at her husband, but she can’t tell if the flush in his face is embarrassment or a result of the cold Feroxi air. “Did he now?” She echoes, a sly smirk growing on her face. She looks back to Owain, gently accepting the gift from his hands as she places a kiss on his forehead. 

    “Why don’t you go set the table for us and we’ll get some food cooked up here soon, ok?”   
Ever enthusiastic, Owain readily agrees before scampering off to the dining area. Little more than dust left in his wake, Lissa returns to her feet and looks to her husband who is still standing off suspiciously near the door. There’s a slight sway in her steps as she saunters over to him, apron clutched in her hands in front of her. “Well, this is a surprise!” she teases. “Did Owain put you up to it?” 

    He subconsciously reaches back, scratching his fingertips along the back of his neck.  _ **“** He…made a convincing argument **.”**_

    A laugh slips past her lips as her arms slip under his to wrap around his torso. Cheek pressed against his chest, she peers up at him with a curious look. “Well, I’m curious to hear that one. You’ve never been one for ‘ _frivolous holidays_ ’.” There’s certainly an impish emphasis on that last part as she mimics his usual word choice.

_**“** No  **,”**_  he agrees, placing his hands on her shoulders. Gently, he moves her back just enough that he can reach into the inner pocket of his shirt. Her hands still linger on his sides as she watches him pull a thin, golden chain from the pouch. She blinks as she watches. He hasn’t bought her jewelry since he proposed! But after a second, she finds herself staring at a delicate gold pendant as it dangles in front of her. It’s smooth, shaped like a swallowtail butterfly. The center is set with a small opalescent gem, the milky white blended with pale, iridescent hues of every color. Lissa remains still as he moves to place it on her, carefully closing the clasp behind her neck.

_**“** But I love you far more than I dislike any festival **.”**_

    A slight heat creeps to her face, despite their years of marriage. She looks down, jaw somewhat slack as she touches her fingertips to the necklace. A moment later, a wide smile breaks across her face as she looks up at her husband once again. “Lon’qu, it’s beautiful!” But her excitement is interrupted by a chuckle she can’t quite suppress. “You actually went into a _jewelry store_?”

    He exhales deeply, chin lifting up as he looks to the ceiling, as if the very mention of it has brought all the stress of that endeavor back to him. _**“** I’m not sure how I made it in the door…The place was crawling with women, it was Hell  **…”**_

    She shakes her head at him, but her smile doesn’t falter. What did she expect? Even if he was being dramatic, what girl doesn’t want to hear that their husband was willing to go through Hell for them (even if it was just his own personal version of it)? Rather than tease him for it further, she lifts up to her toes to cup his jaw in her hands and press her lips to his. It was intended to be brief, but the feeling of his fingers wrapping around her shoulders keeps her there a few seconds longer. When he does allow her to break away, she gives him a wink and a playful whisper. 

    “You’ll get your gift from  _me_ later tonight.” Leaving him little opportunity to respond, she pulls back and throws on the apron over her dress. Her slender fingers run along the front, smoothing out any folds as she turns to head for the kitchen. “Alright, Owain! She calls, time to test this baby out!” She gives the apron one last pat as the boy swings around the door frame. She never expected the next words out of his mouth to freeze her in her tracks so suddenly.

    “Mama! What did you get for Papa?!”

    A rare, ill-subdued laugh escapes Lon’qu somewhere behind as Lissa wracks her brain for an answer, cheeks strawberry red. Apparently her husband wasn’t the only parent Owain would be teaching a few lessons to today.

    Next year, she’s going to have to rethink her gift choice a bit more carefully...

**Author's Note:**

> The second Valentine's day tumblr prompt I received! And a gift for a friend. Would have had this out yesterday if it weren't for the power outage...


End file.
